Statistical Techniques Statistical Mechanics. Kilauea; Mount Etna; Mount Yasur; Mount Nyiragongo and Nyamuragira; Piton de la Fournaise; Erta Ale.

I have no doubt that if it weren’t for Gran Turismo hitting the PlayStation right at the point I was supposed to be prepping for my GCSEs, I wouldn’t have procrastinated my way into being a petrolhead. Since the dawn of the games console, there have been racing games. Admittedly, things have moved on a bit since the days of the ZX Spectrum – Forza 6 in particular boasting some truly stunning visuals. What has always stayed the same, however, is that you simply can’t beat a great racing game. Addictive, frustrating, fun and entertaining, they’ve become the bread and butter of any games console’s product line-up. Picking our absolute favourites wasn’t easy, and this is by no means an exhaustive list, so please feel free to comment below, letting us know yours. Thanks to popular demand, we've already included titles such as TOCA Touring Cars, Grand Prix Legends and Pole Position.

Colin McRae Rally. Ewqlso Keygen Mac. At the time, it was graphically hugely impressive, but what made Colin McRae so excellent was the level of detail involved in the way the rally cars drove. This was a game you had to master, one that represented a genuine challenge that took time and patience in order to start going quicker. It was also one of the first racing games to blur the lines between simulation and arcade-style racing. Rather than endless pages of setup and menus, Colin McRae Rally threw you into the action but then punished you for not mastering its handling. A true classic, and one that set the standard for things to come. Gran Turismo 2.

Image 8 of 17 Gran Turismo 2 did something that we’ve never ever seen another game replicate with its packaging. The discs included individual scratch-and-sniff patches on them that smelt like tyres and petrol. That set the standard for the obsessive level of detail that Gran Turismo 2 went to in order to deliver a complete experience. This game moved the goalposts on in a huge way from the original, offering a vast amount of choice, content and cars – 650 cars was unheard of at the time. For many, it became the iconic PlayStation game, forging an entire generation of car-obsessed gamers who would, in the case of Jann Mardenborough, go on to become racing drivers in real life. Some might argue that later Gran Turismo titles did more, and that perhaps even the FIA-approved racing series in the soon to be released Gran Turismo Sport is the ultimate in racing game. But for us, it was GT2 that was Polyphony Digital at its best.

Forza Horizon. Image 7 of 17 Forza itself is without doubt an excellent franchise. It put racing on the Xbox on the map and for many, it’s a Gran Turismo-beater. Really, though, Gran Turismo remains the original when it comes to console-based sim-racing. On the other hand, Forza Horizon – an open-world spin-off from the original racing game – did everything differently. It presented players with a sandbox within which they could race just about every exciting sports car under the sun.

The physics engine and handling was halfway between simulation and arcade, allowing you to make fairly major mistakes without being heavily penalised. But it was the idea that you could rip through the countryside in an F40 or drift around a mountain pass in a Koenigsegg that truly made the game so exciting. Image 4 of 17 Daytona USA is one of the most iconic arcade racing games. The source of many a pound wasted, it featured pioneering 3D graphics and a competitive multiplayer that linked arcade machines together. Above all else, it was incredibly fun. All you had to do was to outrun competing cars before a timer ran out. Up to eight players could game simultaneously, while some cabinets even featured a camera that would project the driver’s face onto the screen.

The definitive arcade racing game? Toyota Celica GT Rally. Image 1 of 17 Definitely an oddball in the list, but important for so many reasons. Ignoring the quite frankly awful engine sounds, Toyota Celica GT rally ditched that ‘on rails’ feeling which virtually every racing game of the time utilized (this was the ’90s).

Here were cars that could oversteer and slide about, albeit in a very rudimentary way. GT Rally also gave you a co-driver who would issue commands. These weren’t like the full pace notes you get from a modern rally sim, simply ‘left’ or ‘right’. It made for a seriously difficult game. Formula 1 97. Image 6 of 17 The PlayStation featured some of the all-time great racing games.

Formula 1 97 was a particular highlight, featuring fully licensed teams, tracks and drivers. You even got Murray Walker doing voice over. Songframe Serial Number.

Graphically hugely impressive for the time, F1 97 had a fully rendered in-car cockpit view and even the ability to remove dirty tear strips from the driver’s helmet. Realism was ramped up a notch for F1 98, which meant the game included everything you could expect from a proper Grand Prix, including engine failures, fuel issues and adverse weather conditions. The game also had an interesting political history. Initially released with the FIA logo on the packaging, it was taken off sale after the FIA objected. Re-released six weeks later without the logo, in the end the FIA lost a court case and the game continued to be sold without its logo.

Fun fact: changing the driver’s name to ‘cats dogs’ caused the game to rain frogs instead of water. Image 9 of 17 Perhaps the most iconic game ever to involve cars, Out Run remains a classic to this day. Released by Sega back in 1986, it was ground-breaking. The arcade cabinet moved, the track curved and undulated and players could choose the soundtrack to their race. Above all else, it featured a Ferrari Testarossa Spider, a car that never really existed. Yes, Ferrari did commission Pininfarina to build one, but it was never sold by Ferrari as a full production car. As such, Out Run is just about the only way you can drive a Testarossa Spider, no matter how much money you have.

Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit. Image 11 of 17 Picking the most important Need for Speed wasn’t easy. The reason we decided on Hot Pursuit was because of its PC version and the work it did opening up gaming to the world of modification. Nowadays, some racing games are built almost entirely using the PC gaming community, but back when NFS III was released, it was much more of a rarity. Modding communities existed to create new cars and make them available for download.

The selection of cars available, coupled with the ability to play as either a police car or a supercar, made for a hugely exciting format. Forza Motorsport. Image 10 of 17 The original and in many ways the best. Forza Motorsport was Microsoft’s answer to Gran Turismo, and as such was backed by a physics engine that has continued to be perfected up until this day. The physics engine that Turn 10 Studios developed for the game is incredibly complex. It based a car’s handling on everything from weight to drag coefficient and at launch was heralded as the most realistic console racing game ever made.

Since then, Forza has grown into a gargantuan franchise, with the latest installment offering huge amounts of choice, incredible graphics and unparalleled online multiplayer support. Image 5 of 17 Dirt Rally is the newest game on this list.

Recently reviewed by us on PlayStation 4, it harks back to a simpler era of racing game where handling was put above everything else in the development schedule. Put simply, Dirt Rally’s physics engine is fantastic. Think of it like a modern development of the original Colin McRae, albeit even more challenging. This is a tough game that doesn’t shy away from putting the player through numerous ordeals in order for them to improve. The best racing games are those that require practice, and Dirt Rally is undoubtedly one of them. Assetto Corsa. Image 2 of 17 Assetto Corsa is part of a new breed of racing games that continue to develop over time thanks to an extensive modding community.

Initially released back in 2013 for PC, the game has been in constant development since then. It’s played by a large number of hardcore simulation fans online and also is set to get a PlayStation and Xbox release this year. Of all the games on this list, Assetto Corsa is perhaps the most realistic. It’s entirely simulation-focused and boasts a set of race tracks that have been laser scanned so that every single bump and undulation is entirely accurate. TOCA Touring Car Championship. Image 15 of 17 Anyone familiar with NASCAR games will no doubt understand the frustration at how poor the genre has been for far too long. Really, it's all been downhill since NASCAR 2003, created by Papyrus. The studio had been responsible for the much-respected Indianapolis 500 in the late 80s, and later Grand Prix Legends above.

It's no surprise then that NASCAR 2003 was fiendishly realistic both in terms of physics, and in replicating the sport's rules. Sadly, it was the last NASCAR game to be created by the studio as EA acquired exclusive rights to the game series in 2004. And immediately ruined it.

Mobil 1 Rally Championship. Image 16 of 17 Rally games were a rapidly improving genre in 1999 when Mobil 1 debuted, but it was still a unique proposition among the Colin McRaes and V-Rally games for concentrating on the British Rally Championship.

The series itself was hugely exciting - with powerful F2 machines dominating - and the game captured it perfectly. Unlike many games before or since, it wasn't unusual to find punishing full-length stages of dozens of miles, and at the time its physics engine bettered that of many competitors too. Its simulation appeal wasn't as wide as Colin McRae Rally's more accessible format, but for some this was the best available at the time.

Enthusia Professional Racing. Image 17 of 17 Gran Turismo 3 and 4 might have been the PlayStation 2's big sellers but those after more serious physics and even greater car variety also had the option of Enthusia Professional Racing. It was very much a game in the mould of GT: real cars (with a strong Japanese focus, but plenty of other options too), a large number of original circuits, and a few real-world tracks for good measure. But Enthusia's handling was generally more realistic (even if some cars felt a little numb) and a structure that rewarded precise, clean racing.

If you have a PS2, it's well worth seeking out. Mmmm.not sure.

My first 'sim' was Indycar Racing, on an old 486 with a joystick. Then ICR2 was brilliant. I remember clearly a full length race at Michigan chasing Al Unser Jr and finished second by less than a second after 200 laps and pit stops. 10/10 that game. NASCAR Racing 1, 2 and 3 and finally NR2003 is the top 5 list too.

What about Geoff Gammon's F1 games? They were ace.

The best of all was GPL. Physics was decades ahead of it's time, both a good thing and a bad thing. People were not ready. TOCA were a good series as well. I think your list is too sort:).